pulsed laser

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pulsed laser

instrument

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July 13, 2026

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A pulsed laser is a type of laser that concentrates its energy output into brief, high-power bursts, rather than a continuous beam. These pulses can be fired individually or in rapid succession. The instantaneous power during a very short pulse can be extremely high, exceeding 10¹⁵ watts in laboratory experiments.1

Pulsed lasers are frequently used in resonance-ionization spectroscopy (RIS) because they can add time resolution to measurement systems and produce high peak power, which is efficient for nonlinear optics. They are also valuable for capturing very fast events, such as stages in chemical reactions, by compressing pulses to durations as short as 5 femtoseconds. This ability to concentrate high power onto small spots also allows for precise cutting, scribing, and welding in industrial applications.213

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holography
Pulsed-laser holography
A moving object can be made to appear to be at rest when a hologram is produced with the extremely rapid and high-intensity flash of a pulsed ruby laser. The duration of such a pulse can be less than 1/10,000,000 of a second;…
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A moving object can be made to appear to be at rest when a hologram is produced with the extremely rapid and high-intensity flash of a pulsed ruby laser. The duration of such a pulse can be less than 1/10,000,000 of a second;…
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laser
Laser beam characteristics
Pulsed lasers concentrate their output energy into brief high-power bursts. These lasers can fire single pulses or a series of pulses at regular intervals. Instantaneous power can be extremely high at the peak of a very short pulse. Laboratory lasers have generated peak power exceeding…
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Pulsed lasers concentrate their output energy into brief high-power bursts. These lasers can fire single pulses or a series of pulses at regular intervals. Instantaneous power can be extremely high at the peak of a very short pulse. Laboratory lasers have generated peak power exceeding…
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spectroscopy
Lasers for RIS
Pulsed lasers are more frequently used since they can add time resolution to a measurement system. In addition, pulsed lasers produce high peak power, permitting the efficient use of nonlinear optics to generate short-wavelength radiations. For example, in frequency doubling, photons of frequency ω₁ incident…
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Pulsed lasers are more frequently used since they can add time resolution to a measurement system. In addition, pulsed lasers produce high peak power, permitting the efficient use of nonlinear optics to generate short-wavelength radiations. For example, in frequency doubling, photons of frequency ω₁ incident…
Read More

spectroscopy
Pulsed lasers
Pulsed, so-called mode-locked, lasers are capable of generating a continuous train of pulses where each pulse may be as short as 10⁻¹⁴ second. In a typical experiment, a short pulse of light is used to excite or otherwise perturb the system, and another pulse of…
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Pulsed, so-called mode-locked, lasers are capable of generating a continuous train of pulses where each pulse may be as short as 10⁻¹⁴ second. In a typical experiment, a short pulse of light is used to excite or otherwise perturb the system, and another pulse of…
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Donna Strickland
…the intensity that a short laser pulse could deliver hit a plateau because it was impossible to amplify such a pulse any further without damaging the laser system. Strickland and Mourou devised a method in which a short laser pulse was stretched so its peak power was reduced. (When the…
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…the intensity that a short laser pulse could deliver hit a plateau because it was impossible to amplify such a pulse any further without damaging the laser system. Strickland and Mourou devised a method in which a short laser pulse was stretched so its peak power was reduced. (When the…
Read More